How to Play Flute With Less Tension and More Ease
“You translate everything, whether physical or mental or spiritual, into muscular tension.” - Frederick Matthias Alexander
Tension-free playing is the goal for every musician. The aim is to perform with ease while making it look effortless. This is why consistent practice is so important. It's not just about producing beautiful music; it's about conveying that beauty with poise. Tension in the body can hinder this performance. Relaxed playing fosters ease, helping to prevent both mental and physical injuries, allowing for greater expression, increased speed, and flexibility. It also creates a more enjoyable experience, rather than a constant struggle with the instrument. This post will explore techniques like mirror practice, proprioception, stretching, and visualization to enhance flute playing, ensuring it's not just good but effortless.
Understanding Physical Tension
Physical tension in flute playing can accumulate in various areas of the body, often without awareness. This tension arises for many reasons, but fundamentally, it's the body’s response to challenging situations. When faced with difficulty, the subconscious may brace for failure or push the muscles to strive for success. It's crucial to recognize that tension is the body's attempt to assist. However, this can lead to tight grips in the fingers, hindering quick movement, or rigidity that affects proper breathing.
Practicing mindfulness and tuning inwards to the body is an effective way to identify tension, as self-awareness can often be lacking. By paying close attention to sensations in both the body and mind, it becomes easier to pinpoint areas of holding, tension, or gripping.
Proper Posture
First and foremost, aligned posture is one of the most important tools in your arsenal. It’s easy to stand in such a way that you’re actively holding yourself upright instead of allowing your connective tissue to hold you up naturally. Standing rigid actively fights your ability to breathe naturally and move your fingers in a fluid way. Poor posture affects every aspect of your playing because it builds tension in your joints, which keeps your body from being able to move swiftly or naturally.
Over time, you can train yourself to feel when your spine is aligned, but for now, you may need to consult a mirror while you play and while you stand while you learn to realign your spine.
Consider the way your head sits on top of your neck, allowing it to float rather than forcing it to set on top of your spine. Now, consider the anatomy and shape of the spine itself. It’s not straight and rigid like we often imagine it to be. It’s curved with cartilage between the vertebrae to allow it to flex. Consider the diagram below:
Source: D Spine Clinic (https://dspinesurgeon.com/know-your-spine/spinal-anatomy/)
There are several great exercises you can do before, during, and after your flute practice that can help build good posture including:
Remember to approach each pose with ease, not forcing the position, but rather allowing your body to hold the position naturally and to the point of comfort.
Grip and Hand Position
Relaxed hand position in flute playing can be difficult to achieve, especially when you’re playing fast, so the trick is to start slow. Keep your fingers curved and the wrists flat. Create space between your chest, elbows, and arms by creating a triangle with them. You don’t want to “chicken wing” your elbows, but you also don’t want them to be tucked perpendicular to the floor, either. Keeping your wrists flat ensure that there’s little to no tension on the tendons in your fingers. Consider the way that the tendons run throughout the hand and wrist as well as the way that putting stress on those tendons can affect other tendons in the hand:
Source: Cleveland Clinic (https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/body/25060-anatomy-of-the-hand-and-wrist)
Assess your finger and hand position, especially the thumb of the right hand. Keeping your thumb directly under the first finger of the right hand can help pull your wrist back, flattening it, and curving the fingers (especially the pinky). Keep your fingers lightly resting in the cups of the keys. If you’re finding yourself gripping, take a second to make a tight fist then release several times. Then, when you feel your grip tightening on the flute, you can use the same type of motion to release the tension.
There are a few great performance aids that can help with your grip, including the Thumbport II and the Fingerport. The Thumbport helps bring your thumb grip back, giving it a little shelf to rest on and balance your flute. The fingerport helps shift your left hand forward, creating more curvature in the fingers and a flatter wrist. They’re both great options for anyone who struggles with tense gripping and slow playing.
Breath Control
The role of breath in managing tension and ease is profound. It serves as a bridge between the body and mind, influencing our physical and emotional states. When breath is slow and deep, it promotes relaxation, allowing muscles to release tension and creating a sense of calm. Conversely, shallow, rapid breathing can signal stress and anxiety, tightening the body and escalating feelings of discomfort. By becoming aware of our breath and consciously altering it, we can cultivate ease, enhancing our overall well-being and ability to navigate stressors in daily life.
Of course, all of this applies directly to flute playing. Short, shallow breaths create short, shallow phrases, tense fingers, and thin tone. It creates tension in the throat and jaw, constricting the breath and sound resonance. The entire body will react to tense, shallow breaths.
Consider the way that the diaphragm works: sitting just below the lungs, it’s a mushroom-shaped muscle that flattens as you breathe in, creating space in your lungs, and then, like an umbrella closing, pushes air up and out of the lungs when it goes back into its mushroom shape. Check out this diagram and consider the way your body functions:
Source: Brittanica (https://www.britannica.com/science/diaphragm-anatomy)
Here are a few exercises to help build diaphragmatic breathing skills:
Visualize your air filling up your lungs like a giant bucket. Of course, if you’re filling a bucket, the water fills from the bottom to the top. As it’s filling your low ribs should flex not just front to back, but also side to side. Remember, there’s cartilage between the ribs that allows this to happen, so don’t be afraid of the your ribs moving out and side to side.
Lay on your back with your knees up to your chest. Put one hand on your chest and one on your belly so that you can feel the diaphragm moving. Breathe in slowly through your nose, allowing your belly to rise as you do. Then, tighten your belly muscles and push air out through pursed lips. The hand that’s on your chest should remain still and shouldn’t raise.
Mental Approaches
It’s important to stay relaxed during your practice, especially when you’re working on tension in the body. You can do this with body scanning and meditation before, during, and after your practice.
A body scan is a useful practice to enhance your focus and physical awareness before flute practice. Begin by finding a comfortable seated or standing position. Close your eyes and take a few deep breaths, allowing your body to relax. Starting from the top of your head, bring your attention gradually down through each body part, observing any areas of tension or discomfort. Take note of your shoulders, neck, arms, and fingers, ensuring they are relaxed and free of tension. Continue scanning to your torso, hips, legs, and feet. This mindful awareness helps to release tension and prepares your body for optimal performance, making your practice session more effective.
You can also try meditating before your practice. Find a quiet space where you can sit comfortably without distractions. Close your eyes and take a few deep breaths, inhaling through your nose and exhaling through your mouth. Focus on your breath, allowing your mind to settle and release any tension. After a few moments, visualize the sound and flow of the music you wish to play. This mental preparation helps clear your mind and enhances your concentration, creating a peaceful mindset conducive to effective practice. When you feel ready, gently open your eyes and begin your flute practice with intention.
By fostering a deeper awareness of breath and body, these practices can help musicians identify areas of stress and promote relaxation. Mindfulness encourages players to focus on the present moment, allowing them to let go of distractions and perform with greater clarity. Regular meditation can cultivate a calm mindset, which reduces anxiety and enhances overall musical expression. Incorporating these techniques into practice routines not only facilitates easier playing but also encourages a more enjoyable and fulfilling experience with the flute. Remember, the longer you work on positive mental habits, the more your mind builds habits of positivity while you’re playing.
Regular Practice Habits
Of course, the best way to reduce tension and create ease is the practice often and to pay attention to your body while doing so. Practice mindfully, paying close attention to what’s happening in your entire body. Don’t just hone in on what you hear, but rather scan yourself and hone in on what you feel.
Short, focused practice sessions play a crucial role in reducing tension and promoting ease in flute playing. By breaking practice into manageable intervals, musicians can maintain concentration without experiencing fatigue or frustration. These concise sessions allow for targeted work on specific techniques, fostering a sense of accomplishment and building confidence. This approach encourages mindfulness, helping players remain aware of their posture and breath control. As physical tension diminishes, musicians often find their playing becomes more fluid and expressive. Incorporating short practice periods into your routine can lead to a more relaxed and enjoyable flute experience.
Slowly, you can increase the amount of play time, paying close attention to how the body reacts and when tension is cropping up. Over time, you’ll be able to play for longer stretches without your body reacting negatively. Be kind and patient with yourself.
Conclusion
Take a moment to reflect on your playing and your experiences with easing the mind and body during practice and performance. Then, take some time during your next practice session to try to implement some of these strategies, adjusting not just your body but also your mind to playing with ease.
Embracing the journey of learning the flute can be both rewarding and transformative. Whether you are a beginner or looking to refine your skills, the tips and insights shared can help guide you along the way. Remember to practice consistently, seek out resources and support, and most importantly, enjoy the process of making music. With dedication and passion, you can unlock your full potential as a flutist.
What’s next?
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